Computer readable recording medium recording a program of a ball game and the program, ball game processing apparatus and its method

ABSTRACT

After a batter hits a ball, the height of the ball moving on a trajectory passing through present movement positions is judged. For example, future movement positions respectively positioned on a time axis ahead of the present movement positions are indicated on the ground by elliptical marks. The peak of the height becomes a boundary, and before the peak, the mark has a first color and the size of the mark is enlarged in a rising process of the ball, and after the peak, the mark has a second color and the size of the mark is reduced in a falling process of the ball. Therefore, the real pleasure of the operation by the combination of the operation support of a computer and the operation skill of the user himself can be obtained.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present disclosure relates to subject matter contained in JapanesePatent application No. 2000-264553, filed on Aug. 31, 2000, thedisclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to video games. More particularly, thepresent invention relates to a sports video game in which a playerhandles a movable ball on the ground.

2. Description of the Related Art

In a ball game such as a baseball game or a soccer game, in general,there often occurs a scene in which a ball flies high or a scene inwhich a ball moves far away. The foregoing scene is formed by making aplayer hit a ball with a bat or making a player kick a ball through auser's operation.

For example, in a baseball game, in the case where a batter makes a hitto the outfield, there is a case where the ball goes up after the hitand disappears from a screen. At this time, the scene is changed to afielding state of a fielder playing the outfield, and priority is givento provision of the scene in which the user can operate the movement ofthe fielder.

In addition to such consideration, when the ball goes out of the screen,processing to inform the user of the position of the ball is performed.That is, in general, there is adopted such a method that the arrivalpoint (fall point has also the same meaning) of the ball is obtained bycalculation in advance, and a mark is given to the arrival point. In thebaseball game like this, such processing is performed that when a batterhits a ball, a mark is displayed at the arrival point of the ball.

For example, in “PLAY-BY-PLAY POWERFUL PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL 99”(product by Konami Co., Ltd.), such processing is performed that anelliptical mark is displayed at an arrival point of a ball hit by abatter, and the mark is rotated until the ball arrives. For the user,the arrival point of the ball can be found at an early stage, andthereby, it is possible to quickly move a fielder capable of catchingthe ball to the arrival point of the ball.

Also in “SUPER-SPACE NIGHTER PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL KING 2” (product byImagineer Co., Ltd.) or “MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL TRIPLE PLAY 99” (productby Electronic Arts Victor Inc.), such processing as to display anelliptical mark at the arrival point of a ball hit by a batter isperformed similarly. In this case, such a method is adopted that thesize of the mark is changed until the ball arrives so that the arrivalpoint is emphasized.

In recent years, with the improvement of technique of computer graphics,the expressive power for a game has been abundant. Thus, the moreabundant the expressive power becomes, the more realistically themovement of a player appearing in the game or the movement of a ballindirectly moved and controlled can be displayed. The expression withsuch reality raises a feeling of presence still more, and considering anoperation input necessary for game proceedings while judging themovement of a player or the direction of a ball from the real displaybecomes enjoyable.

However, in the foregoing prior art, since the arrival point of a ballis indicated by a mark in advance, the user has only to concentrate theoperation on moving the player toward the display mark (arrival point ofthe ball). Thus, it is not necessary for the user himself or herself topredict the trajectory or arrival point of a ball traveling such aflying distance or height as to go out of the screen, and the operationis a simplified one, that is, the movement to the arrival point, thoughthe expressive power for the game is improved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a computer readablerecording medium recording a program of a ball game and the program, anda ball game processing apparatus and its method, in which the realpleasure of operation by a combination of the operation support of acomputer and the operation skill of the user himself can be obtained.

In order to solve the foregoing problem and to achieve the above object,according to a first aspect of the present invention, a computerreadable recording medium records a program of a ball game, whichrealizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on theground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation of atrajectory of the moving ball, and marking of a future movement positionpositioned on a time axis ahead of a present movement position onto theground. The marking follows a movement position of the ball moving onthe calculated trajectory.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a computerreadable recording medium records a program of a ball game, whichrealizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on theground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation of atrajectory of the moving ball, and a judgement of a height of the ballmoving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position. Thecomputer also indicates a future movement position positioned ahead ofthe present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground.The mark follows a movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory. A size of the displayed mark is changed inaccordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movementposition.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a computerreadable recording medium records a program of a ball game, whichrealizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on theground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation of atrajectory of the moving ball, and a judgement of a height of the ballmoving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position. Thecomputer also indicates a future movement position positioned ahead ofthe present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground.The mark follows a movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory, and changes size and color in accordance with thejudged height of the ball at the present movement position.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprogram realizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ballon the ground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation ofa trajectory of the moving ball, and marking of a future movementposition positioned on a time axis ahead of a present movement positiononto the ground. The marking follows a movement position of the ballmoving on the calculated trajectory.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprogram realizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ballon the ground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation ofa trajectory of the moving ball, and a judgement of a height of the ballmoving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position. Thecomputer also indicates a future movement position positioned ahead ofthe present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground.The mark follows a movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory, and changes size in accordance with the judgedheight of the ball at the present movement position.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprogram realizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ballon the ground. The program causes a computer to execute a calculation ofa trajectory of the moving ball, and a judgement of a height of the ballmoving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position. Thecomputer also indicates a future movement position positioned ahead ofthe present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground.The mark follows a movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory, and changes size and color in accordance with thejudged height of the ball at the present movement position.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing apparatus includes a computer readable recording mediumrecording a program for realizing a ball game in which a ball is handledon the ground, a computer for reading out at least a part of the programfrom the recording medium and executing it, and a display for displayingthe ball game realized by the program. The computer reads out at leastthe part of the program from the recording medium to calculate atrajectory of a moving ball and to mark the ground displayed on thedisplay with a future moving position positioned ahead of a presentmovement position on a time axis. The marking follows a movementposition of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing apparatus includes a computer readable recording mediumrecording a program for realizing a ball game in which a ball is handledon the ground, a computer for reading out at least a part of the programfrom the recording medium and executing it, and a display for displayingthe ball game realized by the program. The computer reads out at leastthe part of the program from the recording medium to calculate atrajectory of a moving ball, and to judge a height of the ball moving onthe calculated trajectory at a present movement position. The computeralso indicates a future movement position positioned ahead of thepresent movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground. Themark follows a movement position of the ball moving on the calculatedtrajectory, and changes size in accordance with the judged height of theball at the present movement position.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing apparatus includes a computer readable recording mediumrecording a program for realizing a ball game in which a ball is handledon the ground, a computer for reading out at least a part of the programfrom the recording medium and executing it, and a display for displayingthe ball game realized by the program. The computer reads out at leastthe part of the program from the recording medium to calculate atrajectory of a moving ball, and to judge a height of the ball moving onthe calculated trajectory at a present movement position. The computeralso indicates a future movement position positioned ahead of thepresent movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground. Themark follows a movement position of the ball moving on the calculatedtrajectory, and changes size and color in accordance with the judgedheight of the ball at the present movement position.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing method for realizing a ball game in which a player handles amovable ball on the ground is characterized in that a trajectory of amoving ball is calculated, and a future moving position positioned aheadof a present movement position on a time axis is marked on the ground.The marking follows a movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing method for realizing a ball game in which a player handles amovable ball on the ground is characterized in that a trajectory of amoving ball is calculated. In addition, a height of the ball moving onthe calculated trajectory at a present moving position is judged, and afuture moving position positioned ahead of the present movement positionon a time axis is indicated by a mark on the ground. The mark follows amovement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory. Asize of the displayed mark is changed in accordance with the judgedheight of the ball at the present movement position.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, a ball gameprocessing method for realizing a ball game in which a player handles amovable ball on the ground is characterized in that a trajectory of amoving ball is calculated. Also, a height of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory at a present moving position is judged, and afuture moving position positioned ahead of the present movement positionon a time axis is indicated by a mark on the ground. The mark follows amovement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory, and asize and a color of the displayed mark is changed in accordance with thejudged height of the ball at the present movement position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a structural example of a video gameapparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view for explaining the relation between a ball and a markaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 3A to 3E are views showing the transition state of a screenaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an operation example according toan embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the followingdescription, a baseball game among ball games will be described as anexample.

First, the constitution of the embodiment of the present invention willbe described. FIG. 1 shows a structural example of a video gameapparatus according to this embodiment. A video game apparatus 1 shownin FIG. 1 includes the function of a ball game processing apparatusaccording to this embodiment. In addition, this video game apparatus 10executes a program recorded on a computer readable recording mediumaccording to this embodiment. Moreover, this video game apparatus 10executes a program according to this embodiment. Besides, this videogame apparatus 10 is used for executing a ball game processing methodaccording to this embodiment.

The video game apparatus 10 includes, for example, a game machine mainbody 11 for processing a video game in accordance with a program, akeypad 50 for interactively operating the video game, and a televisionset (hereinafter referred to as a TV set) 100 having a CRT or the likeas a monitor with a speaker. Besides, this At video game apparatus 10includes a communications interface portion 21 and is connected to anetwork 111 through a communications line 110 so that datacommunications with other network apparatuses is performed.

The keypad 50 includes a button group (for example, a button 50 a, abutton 50 b, a button 50 c, and a button 50 d) which the user canoperate, and a joystick 50 e, and gives instructions by the buttonoperation and joystick operation of the user to the game machine mainbody 11. Here, the button group and the joystick 50 e have the functionof inputting a pitching operation of a pitcher, a swing operation of abatter, a catching/throwing operation of a fielder, and the like.

The TV set 100 makes a picture (image) display and sound output inaccordance with the game content on the basis of a video signal (picturesignal) and a sound signal output from the game machine main body 11.

The game machine main body 11 includes an internal bus 25. A controlportion 12 provided with a unit such as a CPU and ROM, a RAM 13, and ahard disk drive (hereinafter referred to as a HDD) 14 are connected tothis internal bus 25.

The control portion 12 controls the whole apparatus, and executes a gameprocessing while a part or all of the program is stored in the RAM 13.

The RAM 13 includes a program area 13A, an image data area 13B, a workarea 13C and the like. The program area 13A stores a program of a game.Specifically, a CD-ROM 19 stores, for example, a game program inaccordance with a flowchart shown in FIG. 4.

The program area 13A stores a part or all of the game program read by aCD-ROM drive 20 from the CD-ROM 19. The image data area 13B stores imagedata of a background, game characters, and the like required in aprogram execution process. The work area 13C stores various datagenerated in the program execution process.

Incidentally, the game program shown in FIG. 4 and image data can alsobe supplied from the HDD 14 in addition to the CD-ROM 19. In this case,the above game program and image data may be stored in a hard disk 15 ofthe HDD 14. The game program in accordance with the flowchart shown inFIG. 4 and the image data may be stored in the hard disk 15 by priorinstallation or download from the network 111 through the communicationsline 110.

An input interface portion 24, a sound processing portion 18, and agraphics processing portion 16 are connected to the internal bus 25. Thekeypad 50 is connected to the internal bus 25 through the inputinterface portion 24. The TV set 100 is connected to the internal bus 25through the sound processing portion 18 and the graphics processingportion 16.

The graphics processing portion 16 includes a VRAM 17 including a framebuffer. This graphics processing portion 16 generates a video signal onthe basis of the image data stored in the frame buffer by instructionsfrom the control portion 12 as the program is executed, and outputs thevideo signal to the TV set 100. By this, an image display based on theimage data stored in the frame buffer is obtained on a display screen101 of the TV set 100.

The sound processing portion 18 generates a sound signal of voice, BGM(background music), effective sound, or the like in accordance withinstructions from the control portion 12, and outputs the sound signalto the TV set 100.

Further, the CD-ROM drive 20 and a memory card reader/writer 23 areconnected to the internal bus 25. The CD-ROM drive 20 reads the gameprogram, image data, sound data, and the like stored in the CD-ROM 19 asa recording medium. The memory card reader/writer 23 writes data in andreads data from a memory card 22 in accordance with the control of thecontrol portion 12. The data written in the memory card 22 include dataindicating the progress in the middle of the game, data indicatingenvironmental setting of the game, and the like.

Next, a state transition of a ball according to this embodiment will bedescribed. FIG. 2 is a view for conceptually explaining the movement ofa ball from the execution of a batting operation by a batter to thecatch by a fielder in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the positionof the ball several frames ahead of the position of the ball at thepresent moment is predicted, a mark larger than a shadow so that it canbe easily distinguished from the shadow of the ball is displayed, andthe mark is moved while being made to follow the ball.

In FIG. 2, for example, reference character B designates a batter; Y, afielder; and G, a glove of the fielder Y. Reference character Hdesignates an elliptical region in which it is judged that the fielder Ycan catch a ball, and the region will be hereinafter referred to as acatching possible region. Reference character h designates a height fromthe ground to the ball; and P, a peak of the height h from the ground ona trajectory of the moving ball.

Reference characters E1, E2, E3 and E4 designate examples of movementpositions of the ball on the trajectory, respectively. Referencecharacters E11, E21, E31 and E41 correspond to the present movementpositions E1, E2, E3 and E4, respectively, and schematically designatefuiture movement positions positioned ahead of the respectivecorresponding present movement positions on a time axis. The fituremovement position indicates the position of the ball positioned 30frames ahead of the present movement position, which will be describedlater in detail.

Reference characters F0, F1, F11, F2, F21, F3, F31, F4 and F41 designateframe numbers, respectively. For example, the frame number F0 indicatesa frame (one frame is, for example, {fraction (1/60)} second)corresponding to a scene in which the batter B hits the ball. The framesF1, F2, F3 and F4 are frames corresponding to the movement positions E1,E2, E3 and E4 of the ball, respectively.

The frames F11, F21, F31 and F41 are frames corresponding to themovement positions E11, E21, E31 and E41 of the ball, respectively.Here, F11 is a frame number after 30 frames from the frame F1, andsimilarly, F21, F31, and F41 are frame numbers after 30 frames from F2,F3 and F4, respectively. Incidentally, the interval of the 30 frames ismerely an example, and various modifications such as 20 frames or 40frames can be made.

FIG. 2 shows an example of from a scene (frame F0) where the batter Bhits the ball to a scene (frame F41) where the ball is caught by thefielder Y. In the example of FIG. 2, although marks are displayedcorrespondingly to the positions E1, E2, E3 and E4 of the ball,actually, for every frame, a future movement position of the ball ispredicted (calculated) correspondingly to the present movement position,and a mark is displayed on, for example, the ground just under thefuture movement position. Hereinafter, the future movement position ofthe ball is called a movement predicted position.

In FIG. 2, the trajectory of the ball is indicated by a solid line fromthe bat position of the batter B to the position E1, and a broken linefrom the position E1 to the position E41. In this embodiment, themovement predicted position of the ball is obtained from the position,moving direction, and moving speed of the ball at the present moment.Incidentally, in an open-air baseball stadium, if the influence ofweather such as wind, the influence due to the rotation of the ball, andthe like are added, disturbance information can be given to the movementcalculation of the ball. By this, different characteristics in theprogress of a game can be given to each baseball stadium, and thereality can be further improved. Like this, the degree of addition ofthe disturbance information can be variously modified in accordance witha demand for the reality of the game.

In FIG. 2, reference characters SH1, SH2, SH3 and SH4 correspond to thepresent movement positions E1, E2, E3 and E4, and designate shadows (forexample, black) of the ball projected on the ground just under the ballat the present movement position. Each of the shadows SH1, SH2, SH3 andSH4 of the ball is displayed in a fixed or variable size and anelliptical shape at a portion where a perpendicular line drawn from thepresent movement position to the ground intersects with the ground.

Here, although there is cited an example in which the shadow of the ballis displayed at the position just under the movement position, thepresent invention is not limited to this, but the shadow of the ball maybe displayed roughly just under the position. In this embodiment,although the shadow of the ball is displayed in an elliptical shape, thepresent invention is not limited to this, but the shadow may bedisplayed in another shape such as a polygon. Besides, in thisembodiment, although the shadow of the ball is displayed in a fixedsize, the present invention is not limited to this, but the size of theshadow may be changed in accordance with the height of the ball, forexample, the higher the position is, the smaller the shadow of the ballis. Besides, in this embodiment, although the shadow of the ball isdisplayed in black, the present invention is not limited to this, butanother color such as red may be used as long as it can be distinguishedfrom the color of the ground.

In FIG. 2, reference characters M1, M2, M3 and M4 correspond to themovement predicted positions E11, E21, E31 and E41, and designate markscorresponding to the positions of the ball positioned 30 frames ahead ofthe shadows SH1, SH2, SH3 and SH4. These marks M1, M2, M3 and M4 are setto sizes larger than the shadows of the ball for discrimination from theshadows SH1, SH2, SH3 and SH4 of the ball.

The marks M1, M2, M3 and M4 are displayed in sizes and colorscorresponding to the height h of the ball. The mark (for example, themark M1, M2, M3 or M4) is an index indicating the movement predictedposition of the ball at the present moment, the height of the ball, andthe moving state of the ball of rising or falling.

In this embodiment, after the batting operation by the batter is made,the mark is displayed until the ball first falls to the ground or untilthe ball is caught by the fielder. The mark is displayed at the portionwhere the perpendicular line drawn to the ground from the movementpredicted position positioned 30 frames ahead of the ball at the presentmoment intersects with the plane expressing the ground.

Here, although there is cited an example in which the mark is displayedjust under the movement position positioned 30 frames ahead of thepresent movement position, the present invention is not limited to this,but the mark may be displayed roughly just under the position not justunder. In either case, the mark is moved to follow the ball. By this,the user can comprehend the position of the ball after 30 frames inadvance by viewing the position of the mark.

As shown in FIG. 2, the mark is displayed in the elliptical shape as anexample. Also, the mark is displayed such that the size becomes large inproportion to the height h of the ball at the present moment. That is,the mark is variably displayed so that as the position of the ballbecomes high, the size becomes large.

In this embodiment, the size of the mark is changed in accordance withthe a height of the ball at the present moment. In this case, when theball reaches the peak P, that is, the present movement position of theball is moved to the peak P, the size of the mark becomes maximum.Incidentally, in this embodiment, although the maximum size of the markis determined from the relation between the peak P and the presentmovement position, the present invention is not limited to this, but themaximum size of the mark P may be set at the time when the movementpredicted position of the ball reaches the peak P.

In this embodiment, a processing is made so that the color of the markis changed by whether the ball is going up or going down. That is, inthe case where the ball is going up (including the point of the peak P),the mark is displayed in a first color (for example, blue), and on theother hand, in the case where the ball is going down, the mark isdisplayed in a second color (for example, red). By this, the user caneasily comprehend whether the ball is going up at present or going downby viewing the color of the mark.

In this embodiment, although the color of the mark is changed when thepresent movement position of the ball passes the peak P, the presentinvention is not limited to this, but the color of the mark may bechanged when the movement predicted position of the ball reaches thepeak P.

Next, with reference to FIG. 2, the display transition of the ball willbe described in time series from the batting operation of the batter.When the batter B hits the ball, the trajectory of the ball is judgedfrom the batting power to the ball at the time of batting, the balldirection, and the like. In the case where the ball is moved as a flyball, as shown in FIG. 2, the trajectory of the ball describes aparabola making a transition, for example, like the present movementpositions E1, E2, E3 and E4.

When the batting operation in which the batter B hits the ball isperformed by the user's operation of the keypad 50 (for example, frameF0: see FIG. 2), the movement direction, movement speed, and the like ofthe ball are determined. The ball is moved in the imaginary space, andthe ball is displayed at the present movement position E1 at the stageof the frame F1.

From the movement direction, movement speed, and the like of the ball atthe stage of the frame F1, the movement predicted position E11 of themoving ball at the stage of the frame F11 is calculated. On the ground,the shadow SH1 of the ball is displayed corresponding to the presentmovement position E1, and the mark M1 is displayed corresponding to themovement predicted position E11. In the example of FIG. 2, since theball is going up at the moment when it passes through the presentmovement position E1, the mark M1 is displayed in blue.

Next, at the stage of the frame F2, the ball is displayed at the presentmovement position E2. From the movement direction, movement speed, andthe like of the ball at the stage of the frame F2, the movementpredicted position E21 of the ball at the frame F21 is calculated.

The shadow SH2 of the ball corresponding to the present movementposition E2 is displayed on the ground, and the mark M2 corresponding tothe movement predicted position E21 is displayed. Since the ball isgoing up at the moment when it passes through the present movementposition E2, the mark M2 is displayed in blue. Here, since the presentmovement position E2 has a position higher than that of the presentmovement position E1 as the ball goes up, the mark M2 is displayed in asize larger than the mark M1.

Subsequently, at the frame F3, the ball is displayed at the presentmovement position E3. From the moving direction and moving speed of theball at the stage of the frame F3, the movement predicted position E31of the ball at the frame F31 is calculated. The shadow SH3 correspondingto the present movement position E3 is displayed on the ground, and themark M3 corresponding to the movement predicted position E31 isdisplayed as well.

The present movement position E3 is a position where the ball has passedis through the peak P on the trajectory of the ball. Since the ball goesdown after the peak P, the color of the mark M3 is changed from blue tored and it is displayed. Here, even in the case where the presentmovement position E3 is higher than the present movement position E2,the movement predicted position E21 is the peak and the movementpredicted position E31 is lower than the peak. Thus, the mark M3 isdisplayed in a size smaller than the mark M2.

In the case where rising or falling of the ball is judged inconsideration of disturbance information as well, there is a case wherethe ball again goes up by, for example, the influence of a gust of wind.In such a case, as described above, the processing as the rising of theball is performed.

Next, at the frame F4, the ball is displayed at the present movementposition E4. At the present movement position E4, differently from thepast present movement positions E1, E2 and E3, there occurs a scenewhere the fielder Y reaches the catching possible region H at the stageof the frame F41. Here, from the moving direction, moving speed and thelike of the ball at the frame F4, the movement predicted position E41 atthe frame F41 is calculated. The shadow SH4 of the ball corresponding tothe present movement position E4 is displayed on the ground, and themark M4 corresponding to the movement predicted position E41 of the ballis displayed as well.

In the example of FIG. 2, as is apparent from the frame F41, since thefielder Y is positioned on the mark M4, it is judged that the mark M4enters the catching possible region H of the ball at the presentmovement position E4. In this embodiment, the movement and size of themark is fixed in accordance with this judgement. Then, the display ofthe mark M4 is erased at the stage where the ball is caught during thecontinuation of the state where the mark is displayed.

Here, in this embodiment, although the mark is displayed at the positionpositioned 30 frames ahead, the invention is not limited to this.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 3A to 3E, a description will be made onwhat state transition appears on the display screen from the roughexplanation described in FIG. 2. FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D and 3E are viewsfor explaining a display transition example of the mark according tothis embodiment. In FIGS. 3A to 3E, the portions having the samefunctions as those of FIG. 2 are designated by the same referencecharacters and their explanation is omitted. In FIGS. 3A to 3E,reference character BA designates a ball, and D, a direction(hereinafter referred to as a moving direction) in which the ball moves.Incidentally, the moving direction is not actually displayed on thescreen. The reference character SH0 designates a shadow of the ball BAat the frame F0 (see FIG. 2); and K, a fence of a baseball stadium.

When the batter B hits the ball BA thrown by a pitcher, the battingoperation of the batter B is executed through the operation input of thekeypad 50 by the user. At this time, it is assumed that the ball fliesto the outfield.

FIG. 3A shows a scene corresponding to the frame F1 in FIG. 2. Thefielder Y, the shadow SH1 of the ball BA going out of a display screen101, and the mark M1 positioned ahead of the position of the ball BA onthe time axis are displayed on the display screen 101. Since the ball BAhit by the batter B is moved in the direction of the arrow D (it is notactually displayed on the display screen 101), the mark M1 is disposedahead of the shadow SH1 in the direction of the arrow D. Here, the markM1 is displayed in blue.

Even in the scene of FIG. 3B, there is shown a state where the user cannot directly see the ball BA on the display screen 101. However, sincethe mark M1 is blue, the user can easily comprehend that the ball BA isgoing up and moving in the direction of the arrow D. The user sees thetrajectory of the ball from the size and color of the mark M1, andcauses the movement of the fielder Y to follow the moving direction ofthe ball BA through the operation of the keypad 50.

FIG. 3B is a view corresponding to the frame F2. There is shown a statewhere the fielder Y runs after the ball BA. The ball BA is not displayedon the display screen 101, and the shadow SH2 of the ball and the bluemark M2 are displayed. Although the user can not directly see the ballBA, the user can easily comprehend that the ball BA is going up at thisstage since the mark M2 is blue.

Besides, the size of the mark M2 is larger than the mark M1, which showsthat the ball reaches a higher position. The user operates, for example,the joystick 50 e, so that the fielder Y is moved in the direction ofthe arrow D in which the ball BA moves.

FIG. 3C is a view corresponding to the frame F3 in FIG. 2. The ball BAis not displayed on the display screen 101, and the shadow SH3 of theball and the red mark M3 are displayed. Although the user can notdirectly see the ball BA, the user can easily comprehend that the ballBA is going down since the color of the mark M3 is changed from blue tored. Besides, the size of the mark M3 is smaller than the mark M2 ofFIG. 3B. As the ball starts going down, the user starts an operation forcatching the ball BA moving in the direction of the arrow D by operatingthe joystick 50 e.

FIG. 3D is a view corresponding to the frame F4 in FIG. 2. There isshown a state where the fielder Y runs after the ball BA to the vicinityof the fence K of the baseball stadium. Besides, there is shown a statewhere the fielder Y starts the catching operation. Not only the shadowof the ball and the red mark M4 but also the ball BA is displayed on thedisplay screen 101 at the same time. In FIG. 3D, it is judged that thefielder Y enters the catching possible region H since he is positionedin the mark M4. The movement of the mark M4 is stopped and is fixedlydisplayed on the ground. The user can easily comprehend that the fielderY enters the catching possible region H from the fixedly displayed markM4.

FIG. 3E is a view corresponding to the frame F41 in FIG. 2. There isshown a state where the fielder Y catches the ball BA by the glove G.When the ball is caught by the fielder Y, the mark M4 is erased from thescreen.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. Incidentally,the control portion 12 of the game machine main body 11 executes aprogram, so that the following processing is performed. FIG. 4 is aflowchart for explaining an example of the operation according to thisembodiment. Incidentally, during the execution of the operation shown inthis flowchart, although a fielder who is to catch a ball can beoperated by the user's operation of the joystick of the keypad 50 or thelike, in the following explanation, a description will be made mainly onthe processing of a mark after a batter hits a ball.

After the batter hits the ball, first, the processing of displaying themark while the mark is made to follow the trajectory of the ball isstarted. For that purpose, a hit processing for determining the movingdirection, moving angle, and initial speed of the ball is executed (stepS1). The moving direction, moving angle, and initial speed of the ballare determined by the timing of a hitting operation and the like.

Subsequently, it is judged whether the ball is caught by a fielder orfalls to the ground (step S2). In the case where it is judged that theball is not caught by the fielder and the ball does not fall to theground (step S2: NO route), as shown in FIG. 2, the processing ofdisplaying the mark while the mark is made to follow the moving positionof the ball is started. That is, the frame at the present moment is madean original point, and the position of the ball n (n is a naturalnumber) frames ahead is calculated (step S3).

The position of the ball after n frames from the frame at the presentmoment is calculated from the position, moving angle, moving speed, andthe like of the ball at the present moment. If it is desired to producereality, the influence of weather such as wind in the baseball stadiummay be additionally considered. In this embodiment, although theposition of the ball positioned 30 frames ahead of the position at thepresent moment is calculated, the invention is not limited to thisnumber of frames.

On the basis of the position of the ball n frames ahead, which isobtained at step S3, it is judged whether or not the ball is going up onthe trajectory of the ball (step S4). That is, in the case where theheight h (see FIG. 2) of the ball n frames ahead is higher than theheight of the ball at the present moment, it is judged that the ball isgoing up. In the case where the height h (see FIG. 2) of the ball nframes ahead is lower than the height of the ball at the present moment,it is judged that the ball is going down.

Thus, in the case where it is judged that the ball is going up (step S4:YES route), the size of the mark is enlarged from the size at thepresent moment, and the mark is displayed in blue (step S5). On theother hand, in the case where it is judged that the ball is going down(step S4: NO route), the size of the mark is reduced from the size atthe present moment, and the mark is displayed in red (step S6).

The size of the mark is changed in proportion to the height (see heighth of FIG. 2) of the ball from the ground. If the ball is going up, thesize of the displayed mark becomes gradually large as the height of theball becomes high. If the ball is going down, the size of the displayedmark becomes gradually small as the height of the ball becomes low.

Subsequently, it is judged whether the fielder enters the catchingpossible region (step S7). Specifically, it is judged whether the ballat the present moment reaches, after 30 frames, the catching possibleregion (see the catching possible region H of FIG. 2) made to correspondto the fielder who is to catch the ball. That is, as shown in FIG. 2,since it is judged whether catching can be made from the positionalrelation between the catching possible region H and the mark M4, it isjudged that catching can be made not only in the case where the fielderY is positioned on the mark M4, but also in the case where the fielder Yis positioned in the vicinity of the mark M4. The size relation betweenthe mark and the catching possible region of the fielder can bevariously changed.

In the case where it is judged that the fielder enters the catchingpossible region to the ball at the present moment (step S7: YES route),the operation of the fielder is shifted from the operation of the userto the control of the computer, the fielder starts a catching actionautomatically, and the mark is fixedly displayed at the catchingposition of the ball without changing the size and color (step S8). Thenthe processing proceeds to step S9.

Then it is judged whether the ball is caught by the fielder (step S9).In the case where it is judged that the ball is caught by the fielder(step S9: YES route), the mark displayed at present is erased from thedisplay screen (step S10), and the mark display processing is ended.Incidentally, after the fixed display of the mark, until the ball iscaught by the fielder (step S9: NO route), the fixed display of the markat step S8 is held.

At step S7, in the case where it is judged that the fielder does notenter the catching possible range with respect to the position of theball at the present moment (step S7: NO route), the processing returnsto step S2, and it is judged whether the ball is caught or the ballfalls to the ground. The fall of the ball to the ground is judged by thestate of a foul, a home run, a hit, or the like. Subsequently, theprocessing after step S2 is executed.

In the case where it is judged that the fielder catches the ball as aliner, a fly or the like, or it is judged where the ball falls to theground as a foul, a home run, a hit, or the like (step S2: YES route),the processing jumps to step S10 and the display of the mark is erased.In this way, the mark display processing is ended.

As described above, according to this embodiment, in the baseball game,the trajectory of the ball hit by the batter is calculated, and thefuture movement position positioned ahead of the present movementposition on the time axis can be marked on the ground while marking ismade to follow the movement position of the ball moving on thecalculated trajectory. By this, the user can previously know theslightly later position on the trajectory as to the ball changing everymoment. In this case, since the falling position is not immediatelyindicated to the user, the real pleasure of the operation to cause thefielder to follow the movement of the ball remains. In addition to this,since the rather later movement position on the trajectory is indicatedby a mark, it becomes possible to give time to spare for the operationof the fielder.

Besides, in this embodiment, whether the ball is going up or going downis indicated by the change of the size of the mark. Thus, it is possibleto easily see that the ball is going up when the size of the ballbecomes large and that the ball is going down when the size of the markbecomes small. Moreover, this embodiment is devised such that whetherthe ball is going up or going down can be discriminated by the color ofthe mark. Thus, it is possible to further improve the visual recognitionby adding the information of the color, so that it is recognized thatthe ball is going up when the size of the mark becomes large and thecolor thereof is a first color (for example, blue), and that the ball isgoing down when the size of the ball becomes small and the color thereofis a second color (for example, red).

Like this, the operation result by the combination of the operationsupport (mark display) of the computer and the skill of the user himselfcan be obtained. As a result, in the ball game, since the realisticsensation that the user himself takes part in the game can be created,the interest can be further elevated.

Incidentally, in the foregoing embodiment, although the elliptical markis shown as an example, the invention is not limited to this shape, butmarks of various shapes are applicable without specific limitation.Various shapes, for example, a polygon such as a triangle or a square,or a star shape, are applicable.

Incidentally, in this embodiment, although the description has been madeon the case where the trajectory of the ball draws an arc, the inventionis not limited to this. For example, when the weather of the baseballstadium is bad and there is a strong wind blowing, such a case isconceivable that the ball repeats rising and falling by the influence ofthe wind so that it is difficult for the user to predict the trajectoryof the ball. In such a case, since the future position of the ball ispredicted by calculation for every frame, a more realistic trajectory ofthe ball than the prior art can be presented. To such real trajectory ofthe ball, the user can feel the interest of the game that he or she mustmove the fielder properly to the catching position by predicting thetrajectory of the ball through the mark.

In the foregoing embodiment, although the baseball game is cited as anexample of the ball game, the present invention is not limited to this,but the invention can be applied to soccer, basketball, Americanfootball, tennis, ice hockey, or the like as long as the game is such aball game that a player in the game catches a ball. It is possible toobtain the same effect even in a ball game other than the baseball game.

The present invention can be applied to any of a game special purposemachine, an arcade machine, a personal computer, a portable informationterminal, a portable telephone, and the like.

Besides, in the foregoing embodiment, although the program for realizingthe embodiment of the present invention is recorded in the CD-ROM or thehard disk, the present invention is not limited to this, but it may berecorded in a computer readable recording medium such as an MO (magneticoptical disk) or a DVD. Besides, in the case where the above program isdownloaded to the hard disk, a commercial network, Internet, intranet,extranet or the like may be used as the network 111 (see FIG. 1).

As described above, according to the present invention, since the futureposition of the moving ball is indicated by a mark, and the mark isdisplayed on the ground while it is made to follow the movement of theball, it is possible to provide a computer readable recording mediumrecording a program of a ball game and the program, and a ball gameprocessing apparatus and its method, in which the real pleasure of theoperation by the combination of the operation support of the computerand the operation skill of the user himself can be obtained.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer readable recording medium recording a program of a ball game, which realizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the recording medium recording the program for causing a computer to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of the moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 2. The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark beneath the future movement position.
 3. The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark in an elliptical shape.
 4. The recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark and to execute an indication of a shadow of the ball at the present movement position.
 5. A computer readable recording medium recording a program of a ball game, which realizes the ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the recording medium recording the program for causing a computer to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of the moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size and a color of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 6. The recording medium according to claim 1 or 5, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the change of the size of the mark so that the size of the mark gradually becomes large until the height of the moving ball reaches a peak while the size is made to follow rising of the ball, and so that the size of the mark gradually becomes small after the height of the moving ball reaches the peak while the size is made to follow falling of the ball.
 7. The recording medium according to claim 5, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the change of the color of the mark just before or after the height of the moving ball reaches a peak.
 8. The recording medium according to claim 1 or 5, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of the size of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 9. The recording medium according to claim 5, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of the color of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 10. The recording medium according to claim 7, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of a shape of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 11. A computer program product relating to a ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the computer program product causing a computer to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of the moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 12. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute the change of the size of the mark so that the size of the mark gradually becomes larger until the height of the moving ball reaches a peak so that the size follows rising of the ball, and so that the size of the mark gradually becomes smaller after the height of the moving ball reaches the peak so that the size follows falling of the ball.
 13. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute fixing of the size of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 14. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute the display of the mark beneath the future movement position.
 15. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute the display of the mark in an elliptical shape.
 16. The computer program product according to claim 11, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute the display of the mark and to execute an indication of a shadow of the ball at the present movement position.
 17. A computer program product relating to a ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the computer program product causing a computer to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of the moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size and a color of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 18. The computer program product according to claim 17, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute the change of the color of the mark just before or after the height of the moving ball reaches a peak.
 19. The computer program product according to claim 18, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute fixing of a shape of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 20. The computer program product according to claim 17, wherein the computer program product causes the computer to execute fixing of the color of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 21. A ball game processing apparatus comprising: a computer readable recording medium recording a program for realizing a ball game in which a ball is handled on the ground; a computer for reading out at least a part of the program from the recording medium and executing at least the part of the program; and a display for displaying the ball game realized by the program, wherein the computer reads out at least the part of the program from the recording medium to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of a moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 22. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark beneath the future movement position.
 23. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark in an elliptical shape.
 24. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the display of the mark and to execute an indication of a shadow of the ball at the present movement position.
 25. A ball game processing apparatus comprising: a computer readable recording medium recording a program for realizing a ball game in which a movable ball is handled on the ground; a computer for reading out at least a part of the program from the recording medium and executing at least the part of the program; and a display for displaying the ball game realized by the program, wherein the computer reads out at least the part of the program from the recording medium to execute: a calculation of a trajectory of the moving ball; a judgement of a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present movement position; an indication of a future movement position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark displayed on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and a change of a size and a color of the mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 26. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 21 or 25, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the change of the size of the mark so that the size of the mark gradually becomes large until the height of the moving ball reaches a peak while the size is made to follow rising of the ball, and the change of the size of the mark so that the size of the mark gradually becomes small after the height of the moving ball reaches the peak while the size is made to follow falling of the ball.
 27. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the program causes the computer to execute the change of the color of the mark just before or after the height of the moving ball reaches a peak.
 28. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 27, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of a shape of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 29. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 21 or 25, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of the size of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 30. The ball game processing apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the program causes the computer to execute fixing of the color of the mark and a display position thereof when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 31. A ball game processing method for realizing a ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the method comprising: calculating a trajectory of a moving ball; judging a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present moving position; indicating a future moving position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and changing a size of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 32. The ball game processing method according to claim 31, wherein the size of the mark and a display position thereof are fixed when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 33. The ball game processing method according to claim 31, wherein the mark is displayed beneath the future movement position.
 34. The ball game processing method according to claim 31, wherein the mark is displayed in an elliptical shape.
 35. The ball game processing method according to claim 31, wherein the mark is displayed and a shadow of the ball at the present movement position is displayed.
 36. A ball game processing method for realizing a ball game in which a player handles a movable ball on the ground, the method comprising: calculating a trajectory of a moving ball; judging a height of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory at a present moving position; indicating a future moving position positioned ahead of the present movement position on a time axis by a mark on the ground, the mark following a movement position of the ball moving on the calculated trajectory; and changing a size and a color of the displayed mark in accordance with the judged height of the ball at the present movement position.
 37. The ball game processing method according to claim 31 or 36, wherein the size of the mark is changed so that the size of the mark gradually becomes large until the height of the moving ball reaches a peak while the size is made to follow rising of the ball, and the size of the mark is changed so that the size of the mark gradually becomes small after the height of the moving ball reaches the peak while the size is made to follow falling of the ball.
 38. The ball game processing method according to claim 36, wherein the color of the mark is changed just before or after the height of the moving ball reaches a peak.
 39. The ball game processing method according to claim 38, wherein a shape of the mark and a display position thereof are fixed when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition.
 40. The ball game processing method according to claim 36, wherein the color of the mark and a display position thereof are fixed when a positional relation between the moving ball and the player satisfies a predetermined condition. 